PANAMA CITY BEACH — Sometimes the best Christmas gifts are those you can eat.

“I think what’s special about prime rib is you usually will only have something like that for Christmas because it’s such a decadent food. It’s just been a tradition in my family for special meals, something good for Christmas,” said Leia Mayer, who owns Bridge Span 14 with her husband, Andy Mayer.

The prime rib recipe will be served during Christmas Eve dinner at the restaurant, 105 Market St., in Carillon Beach.

“I like to serve it with French scallop potatoes — blanched potatoes sliced very thin and then alternated with layers of garlic and mushrooms and a little cream on top. It is absolutely fabulous, not difficult at all to make,” Mayer said. “The other thing I would serve that with is sautéed blackened asparagus.”

Mayer has been working with gourmet chef Justin Wright from Café Tango in Santa Rosa Beach for the restaurant’s dinner menus.

“So far Justin and I have worked together and collaborated on styles and ideas,” said Mayer, who also will serve a Christmas morning brunch.

“We will be set up in the east and west dining rooms because we are busier for Thanksgiving and Christmas,” said Boar’s Head owner Barry Ross. “We are going to have a traditional menu. The thing we try to do with this buffet that makes it different is it is a dinner, not a brunch. Prime rib is one of our specialties.”

The roast prime rib of beef au jus will be offered as well as the roasted breast of turkey and roast leg of lamb, seafood and traditional sides.

One of the chilled salads will include cranberry Waldorf, a recipe handed down from his mother.

“This is a very old and treasured family recipe from Betty Jean Ross that has been a part of all our holiday celebrations for as long as we can remember,” said Ross, who likes to use Fiji apples in the recipe. “She was a great cook and the sort of person who always had her eye open for recipes. It’s a fun recipe, very colorful. It’s a very straightforward recipe. Sometimes it’s hard to top simple when it comes to recipes.”

The recipe serves eight, but the restaurant must multiply that by several hundred for Christmas Day.

Other Boar’s Head recipes, such as the squash casserole, have become family favorites.

“A couple of them we have adopted as family recipes,” Ross said.

Boar’s Head homemade favorites also will include signature desserts, as well as the addition of the seasonal sweet potato pecan pie with Chantilly cream and pumpkin pie.

When I caught up with chef Rob Burgess of Saltwater Grill, 11040 Hutchison Blvd., on Tuesday, he was preparing a luncheon for the Bay Point Women’s Club, followed by two other private holiday parties in the afternoon.

“When you are working on your menu, keep it simple, keep it fun,” Burgess said. “The holidays are meant for spending time with family, so keep the menu simple so you can spend time with your family and not in the kitchen.”

On Christmas, the holiday menu at his home is a mix of everyone’s favorites.

“Last year, we had ham, rib eye, sweet potatoes, regular mashed potatoes and green bean casserole,” Burgess said. “My favorite thing is ham. The New Orleans ham is a collaboration of four different recipes.”

Burgess makes the New Orleans style glazed ham for Saltwater’s Thanksgiving buffet as well for his family on Christmas Day. The restaurant will be closed on Christmas, but Saltwater will have a special New Year’s menu, including grouper macadamia with orange ginger glaze. The recipe also could be served for Christmas dinner.

“People come from all over the country to eat fresh Gulf grouper,” said Burgess, who will be serving it with saffron risotto and sautéed snow peas.

For Tuesday’s holiday luncheon, Burgess was serving grilled grouper over butternut squash and risotto and a cranberry and black pepper sauce. He also came up with a special hors d’ouevre — goat cheese, caramelized onion and fig tartlets.

“Warm baked goat cheese, caramelized onions and figs nestled in a petite pastry shell makes for a great quick and easy holiday party hors d’oeuvre,” he said. “An amateur could learn to do it. It took me 20 minutes for my 70. For a family of five, it would take all of five minutes from start to finish.”

Finely peel and chop fresh garlic and place in dish with extra virgin olive oil, pepper and chopped rosemary to begin infusing the oil with the herbs.

Place prime rib roast in a large roasting pan. Massage infused oil on all sides of the roast, then sprinkle on salt. Then be sure the fat side is facing up.

Place roast in oven for 30 minutes at 450 degrees then reduce heat to 325 until the internal temperature reaches approximately 115 degrees, about 1 hour and 30 minutes. Once the roast is removed from the oven the temperature will continue to rise around 10 degrees.

Place roast on platter until you are ready to serve. Use the drippings along with the red wine to make a gravy.

Source: Leia Mayer, Bridge Span 14

French Scalloped Potatoes

3-4 medium organic Yukon Gold potatoes

1 clam shell of finely chopped organic chives

4 cloves of fresh garlic finely chopped

5 organic white button mushrooms sliced

½ cup Ocheesee Creamery cream

½ cup Ocheesee Creamery whole milk

1 stick of butter

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Use a small amount of butter to grease the baking dish, then rub the inside of the dish with a cut in half clove of garlic, set aside. Peel potatoes then cut in 1/8-inch slices.

Arrange a thin layer of potatoes on the bottom of the baking dish then top with mushrooms, chopped garlic, salt, pepper and chives. Alternate this until you reach ¼ of the top of your baking dish. Top with 1 cup of cream and whole milk mixed.

Bake at 375 until the top is bubbly and brown.

Source: Leia Mayer, Bridge Span 14

Blackened Asparagus

Fresh organic asparagus

1 tablespoon Ocheesee Creamery butter

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Blackened Seasoning:

1 tablespoon paprika

2 tablespoons salt

1 tablespoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon white pepper

1 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat olive oil in a saute pan. Take about 5 stocks of asparagus at a time and make sure each is even in length, then snap the asparagus so the woody ends are all gone. Discard woody ends, continue until you have prepared all the vegetable.

Once oil has heated, carefully add the butter. Add tender stocks of asparagus to the heated pan and toss to evenly coat. Sprinkle desired amount of blackened seasoning to pan.

Cook the vegetable for approximately 6 minutes or until tender. Serve immediately.

Source: Leia Mayer, Bridge Span 14

Grouper Macadamia

10 each 7-8 ounce black grouper filets

2 cups macadamia nuts

2 cups Japanese breadcrumbs

½ pound butter, melted

Salt and pepper to taste

Orange ginger glaze

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. On a lightly greased baking sheet, align grouper filets so they are not touching.

Mix macadamia nuts and breadcrumbs together and put a light layer over filets, no more than ¼-inch thick.

Drizzle melted butter over breadcrumb mixture. Place in preheated oven for 18-20 minutes until breadcrumb mixture is lightly toasted and grouper is flaky.

To serve: Ladle 2 ounces of orange ginger sauce on plate and place grouper filet on sauce.

Source: Chef Rob Burgess, Saltwater Grill

Orange Ginger Glaze

6 oranges

1 gallon water

2 quarts Thirster orange juice concentrate

2 tablespoon kosher salt

¼ cup chopped fresh ginger

2 tablespoons ground ginger

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1 pound dark brown sugar

3 tablespoons Steen’s cane syrup

Slice the oranges. Then add all ingredients to small stock pot. Simmer for 10 minutes. Strain through chinois. Put strained liquid back in pot, bring to a boil and use an arrowroot slurry to thicken.

Source: Chef Rob Burgess, Saltwater Grill

Goat Cheese, Caramelized Onion and Fig Tartlets

8 ounces fresh goat cheese

¼ cup heavy cream

½ cup sweet onion, small dice

3 garlic cloves, crushed

1-2 sprigs fresh rosemary

16 mini pastry shells (you can find these in the freezer aisle of your local grocer)

2 tablespoons good quality olive oil

4 each fresh black mission figs, quartered lengthwise

Salt and pepper to taste

Combine goat cheese and heavy cream in mixing bowl of stand mixer. Mix on speed 7 for 3 minutes or until goat cheese is soft and light.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Using 1 tablespoon olive oil, toss figs with salt and freshly ground black pepper and arrange on sheet tray in a single layer. Roast figs for 12-15 minutes.

Add remaining olive oil to a small sauté pan, over medium-low heat add sweet onion, crushed garlic and rosemary. Season with salt and ground pepper. Sauté until onions are caramelized, and discard rosemary.

Spoon goat cheese mixture evenly between the shells, top with caramelized onions and one slice of roasted figs.Place assembled tartlets on sheet pan and bake for an additional 3-5 minutes.

For garnish, place one rosemary leaf across each fig.

Source: Chef Rob Burgess, Saltwater Grill

Cranberry Waldorf Salad

2 cups (½ pound) fresh cranberries

3 cups miniature marshmallows

¾ cups granulated sugar

2 cups diced unpared, tart apples

½ cup seedless green grapes

½ cup walnuts

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup whipping cream

Grind the cranberries and combine the marshmallows and sugar, cover and chill.

Add the apples, grapes, walnuts and salt. Whip cream and fold into the mixture. Chill.